Roger Taylor (Queen drummer)

Roger Taylor
Taylor performing with Queen + Adam Lambert in December 2017
Born
Roger Meddows Taylor

(1949-07-26) 26 July 1949 (age 75)
King's Lynn, Norfolk, England
EducationBSc, Bachelor Degree in Biology
Alma materEast London Polytechnic
Occupations
  • Musician
  • songwriter
Years active1968–present
Spouse
Sarina Potgieter
(m. 2010)
Children5, including Rufus and Tigerlily
Musical career
GenresRock
Instruments
  • Drums
  • vocals
  • guitar
Labels
Member of
Formerly of
Websiterogertaylorofficial.com

Roger Meddows Taylor OBE (born 26 July 1949) is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He achieved international fame as the drummer and backing vocalist for the rock band Queen.[1] As a drummer, Taylor was recognised early in his career for his unique sound[2] and was voted the eighth-greatest drummer in classic rock music history in a listener poll conducted by Planet Rock in 2005.[3] He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 as a member of Queen.

As a songwriter, Taylor composed at least one track on every Queen album, and often sang lead vocals on his own compositions. He wrote or co-wrote three UK number ones ("These Are the Days of Our Lives",[4] "Innuendo" and "Under Pressure") and wrote a further five major hits ("Radio Ga Ga", "A Kind of Magic", "Heaven for Everyone", "Breakthru" and "The Invisible Man").[5] He has collaborated with such artists as Eric Clapton, Roger Waters, Roger Daltrey, Robert Plant, Phil Collins, Genesis, Jimmy Nail, Kansas, Elton John, Gary Numan, Shakin' Stevens, Foo Fighters, Al Stewart, Steve Vai, Yoshiki, Cyndi Almouzni and Bon Jovi. As a producer, he has produced albums by Virginia Wolf, Jimmy Nail and Magnum.

As a singer, Taylor employs a falsetto vocal range. During the 1980s, in addition to his work with Queen, he formed a parallel band known as the Cross, in which he was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist. During the early 1980s, Taylor was also a panellist on the UK quiz show Pop Quiz, hosted by Mike Read. In 2014, he appeared in The Life of Rock with Brian Pern as himself.

  1. ^ Macnab, Geoffrey. "Roger Taylor interview: The Queen drummer has written the soundtrack for British film Solitary". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  2. ^ Rolling Stone – Issue 149 – 12 June 1973
  3. ^ "Zeppelin voted 'ideal supergroup'". BBC News. 10 July 2005. Archived from the original on 21 October 2007. Retrieved 28 January 2008.
  4. ^ "These Are the Days of Our Lives". Bechstein Debauchery. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 28 January 2008.
  5. ^ "The Invisible Man". Bechstein Debauchery. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 28 January 2008.

Developed by StudentB